It is remarkable that a technically-minded Roman Catholic RAF fighter pilot, who studied physics at Scotland’s oldest university and became a physical education teacher after the war, should find himself in close contact with a traditional witchcraft coven as early as 1942. This was outrageous and dangerous. The Witchcraft Act was not repealed until almost ten years later and the Old Religion, the pre-Christian religion of North-West Europe, was still banned. Yet, Bill Love (that’s his real name) remained firmly attached to the concept of living in harmony with nature, and in 1953, he asked to join such a coven.

The High Priestess, who initiated him, had herself been drawn into The Craft during the 1920s and often told stories of older members with memories going back to the end of the 19th century. So, Love’s story has ancient roots with passed-on memories from a time when everything connected to this way of life was very much against the law. Love learned to live in harmony with nature from the experience of doing what these elders taught him and, in addition to this, during the 1950s, he met many of the famous people who first brought this innate way of life to the public’s attention. This provided him with unique opportunities of following roots into spheres, which many modern practitioners of Wicca can only dream about.